Last resort
Appellation Healdsburg and Folia Bar & Kitchen (Healdsburg)
GETAWAYS • Napa
The Skinny: Chef and hotelier Charlie Palmer opened Appellation Healdsburg in September, a resort just north of downtown. Inside, he’s launched a new restaurant, Folia Bar & Kitchen, along with a rooftop bar.
The Scene: With 108 rooms and suites spread across a main hotel building and multiple bungalows, Appellation is already giving the nearby Montage and Meadowood resorts a run for their money when it comes to laid-back wine country glam. Like the Hotel Healdsburg, which Palmer opened over two decades ago, the rooms are modern and unstuffy, with built-in elements, barn doors, outdoor areas, and vineyard-inspired artwork.
The Food: Folia Bar & Kitchen is led by culinary director Thomas Bellec and executive chef David Intonato, who most recently ran the kitchen at Gardenia in Los Gatos. (Palmer’s son, Reed Palmer, is chef de cuisine.) The dinner menu draws on seasonal produce and hearth-grilled meats and fish, with an $85 three-course prix fixe that’s a steal for wine country. There are five starters and five entrees to choose from, as well as supplemental snacks and larger format dishes, including a roast chicken and a bone-in New York strip for two. (An à la carte menu is also available in the lounge.) A clear early hit on the fall menu was a pork schnitzel dish with gin lardo, Brussels sprouts, pickled peppers, herbs plucked from the garden outside, and a bagna cauda-style sauce of anchovy and capers. There’s also a striking starter of house-made country pâté en croute.
The Drink: It wouldn’t be a Charlie Palmer restaurant in Healdsburg without a Sonoma-centric wine list, with a few nods in the direction of Napa and Burgundy, and a Bandol rosé by the glass. Cocktails are decidedly modern and unique without overdoing it on cleverness, like the spicy Whisper & Burn, featuring serrano chile-infused mezcal, aloe liqueur, cucumber, basil, lime, and cardamom. There’s also a selection of classics including a bees knees and a standard daiquiri. For post-wine-tasting sunset cocktails, or after-dinner drinks, head to Andy’s Beeline Rooftop on the hotel’s top floor, which has its own cocktail list, wines by the bottle, and 10 wines by the glass.
Why It’s FOUND: By the time summer rolls around, Appellation Healdsburg is sure to be the new go-to spot for wine country tourists and daytrippers alike, offering several options for drop-in dining or drinks, as well as a new, luxe option for a weekend up north. Get there before the crowds do. –Jay Barmann
→ Appellation Healdsburg and Folia Bar & Kitchen (Healdsburg) • 101 Dovetail Ln • Folia open daily 7-10a & 12-230p; dinner Wed-Sun 5-9p • Reserve • Rooms from $570/night/Jan weekend • Book.